Punjab assembly has passed a bill which states that whoever causes injury, damage or sacrilege to Guru Granth Sahib with an intention to hurt the religious feelings of the people will be punished with imprisonment for life.
- The Bill – Code of Criminal Procedure (Punjab Amendment – was moved by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.
- The Bill seeks life imprisonment for sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib, by adding section 295 AA in IPC and enhancement of punishment under section 295 of IPC, injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class from two to 10 years.
- The move comes amidst a number of cases of sacrilege involving the Guru Granth Sahib in the past couple of months which triggered violent protests. Police firing during the clash in Faridkot had claimed two lives last month.
- However, the amendment in the bill brought by Leader of Opposition Charanjit Singh Channi and Congress MLAs Ashwini Sekhri and Tarlochan Singh was lost by voice vote.
The Congress leaders wanted provisions of similar punishments should be made for those causing damage to Gita, Bible, Quran, Ramayan and Mahabharta.
Additional Info
- Governor of Punjab : Kaptan Singh Solanki
- Chief Minister of Punjab : Prakash Singh Badal
- Capital of Punjab : Chandigarh
